Auxiliary motor starter control circuitry including remote and local control of plural batteries

ABSTRACT

An auxiliary starter circuit for an engine-driven fire pump which circuit is located upon the engine itself while the primary automatic starting circuit is located at a distance therefrom whereby the engine may be easily started manually if desired. The circuitry components for starting the engine include two alternatively usable batteries which are arranged to be selectively connected in series with an engine starter. The auxiliary starter circuit includes a double pole, two-position toggle switch which selects the desired battery and a threeposition (start-run-off) toggle switch which is manipulated to momentarily connect the starter in series with the selected battery until the engine has been started and to thereafter permit the engine to continue to run until it is switched to the &#39;&#39;&#39;&#39;off&#39;&#39;&#39;&#39; position.

United States Patent 1 [11] 3,720,839 Spahr 51March 13, 1973 1 AUXHLIARY MOTOR STARTER CONTROL CIRCUITRY INCLUDING REMOTE AND LOCAL CONTROL OF Primary Examiner-G. R. Simmons AttmeyF. W. Anderson et al.

PLURAL BATTERIES 57 R T Inventor: Gene L. Spahr, Zionsville, lnd. 1 ABST AC I An auxiliary starter circuit for an engine-driven fire Ass'gnee' FMC corporamn Jose pump which circuit is located upon the engine itself Filed: March 17. 1972 while the primary automatic starting circuit is located at a distance therefrom whereby the engine may be App! 235737 easily started manually if desired. The circuitry components for starting the engine include two alterna- U.S. Cl. ..290/37, 290/38, 290/50, tively usable batteries which are arranged to be selec- 307/48, 307/66 tively connected in series with an engine starter. The Int. Cl ..F02h 11/00 auxiliary tarter circuit includes a do ble pol tw Field f Search 66 position toggle switch which selects the desired battery and a three-position (start-run-off) toggle switch {56] R e e Cited which is manipulated to momentarily connect the starter in series with the selected battery until the en- UNITED STATES PATENTS gine has been started and to thereafter permit the en- 2,761,978 9/1956 Piumi ..290/33 X gine to continue to run until it is switched to the off 2,692,953 /1954 Markett ..290/37 X position, 3,108,190 10/1963 Gebhard ..307/48 X 2,930,901 3/1960 Freeman ..307/48 3 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures REMOTE 4o CONTROLLER I l l l l l l l f ,55 41 43 44 45 46 4'l- 56 L.. .88 START- RUN-OFF BATTERY SELECTOR 8T SWITCH SWITCH J 7 7 1 52 "to f 30 I 81 1| ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT 33 easeC 66 hynf go |l i)" 62 32. G1 coNTAcToR 1 CONTACTOR I FOR BATTERY 34 {FOR BATTERY 55 5G A /L J B 2 2e ear BATTERY BATTERY A B l STARTER PNENTEDMARIB I975 3,7201%39 SHEET 2 OF 2 JUNCTION BOX TIG 2 AUXILIARY MOTOR STARTER CONTROL CIRCUITRY INCLUDING REMOTE AND LOCAL CONTROL OF PLURAL BATTERIES BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention generally pertains to electrical control systems for starting engines, and more particu larly, it pertains to an auxiliary starter control system to be used in lieu of the, primary starter controlsystem.

2. Description of the Prior Art Engines, or motors, which are started and operated by remote controllers are commonly provided in various industrial applications. For example, fire pump engines are typically started by remote controllers which are located at or near the tire sensing devices with the pump and driving engine being located at a distance therefrom near a ready source of water. Such remote control equipment is typically adapted to completely control the operation of the engine, and, in order to provide reliable starting of the engine under emergency conditions, the remote controller is usually the only engine control provided. This lack of an auxiliary control presents a problem when it is desired to operate the engine at the site of the fire pump rather than attempting to start the engine at the remote location of the controller. With conventional engine controls a cumbersome arrangement of temporary jumper wires or the like must be provided in order to accomplish this manual operation. It is, of course, necessary to maintain the remote control connections to the engine to provide for reliable remote starting of the engine, and yet it has been found to be desirable to have an auxiliary, or manual, control provided at the location of the engine which could be operated in lieu of the remote controls and which would not in any way reduce the efficiency and reliability of the remote controls.

In one prior art type of control system for starting a fire pump engine a pair of alternatively usable batteries are provided which are each connected through conventional electrical contactors to a starter for the engine. By remote control means, either one or the other battery may be selected to power the starter and to power the other electrical equipment involved in the operation of the engine such as the fuel solenoid, spark plugs, indicator lights, etc. Heretofore, no simple and reliable manual control means has been provided for operating such an engine starter system independently of the remote controller.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION With the present invention an auxiliary control system for starting an engine is provided whereby either one of two batteries may be selectively connected to energize the starter for the period of time required until the engine is started. The control means will then leave the selected battery connected to the various electrical equipment necessary for the operation of the engine while removing the starter connection to the battery. It will be recognized that the aforedescribed starter system of the prior art has been provided with an easily operable manual control means while maintaining its regular remote controller without any loss in reliability.

The control system of the present invention includes a pair of conventional switches with one switch comprising a two-pole switch adapted to select the desired battery with the other switch comprising a two-pole switch adapted to connect the selected battery temporarily to the starter and then to permit the starter to be removed from the power circuitry once the engine has been started while providing battery power to the other electrical equipment in the engine. Thus, manual control of the engine can be readily provided by a relatively simple and inexpensive auxiliary starting system,

which is comprised of only two switches. As will be pointed out hereinafter, this auxiliary starting system can be directly attached to the engine block for ready availability.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of starting circuitry for an engine which circuitry embodies the auxiliary control system of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic illustration of a fire pump and the drive engine therefor with the engine having attached thereto the auxiliary control system of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged transverse section of the auxiliary control system and the mounting means therefor as shown in FIG. 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now more particularly to the drawings, FIG. 1 shows schematically the control circuitry for starting and operating an engine. The conventional control circuitry and components for starting the engine include a starter 22, a pair of selectively operable batteries A and B, a pair of electrical contactors 24 and 26 which are selectively energized to respectively connect the battery A or B to the starter, and a fuel solenoid 28 and the other electrical equipment 30 which is necessary for operating the various components and accessories of the engine. Each of the electrical contactors 24 and 26 is conventional and includes a relay coil 32 and an electrical contact 34 which is adapted to be closed when its associated relay coil is energized. By selectively energizing the relay coils 32 through their power connection lines 33 and 37, respectively, one of the batteries A or B will be connected in series with the starter 22 since (as can be seen in FIG. 1) the starter is electrically connected by means of leads 38 with each of the contacts 34 in the contactors 24 and 26.

In a conventional set-up the engine is started and is operated from a remote controller 40 which is provided with a series of leads 42, 43, 44, 45, 46 and 47 which are connected to the aforedescribed electrical circuitry and electrical components of the engine. Line 42 is connected to the various electrical equipment 30 in the engine, line 43 is connected to the lead 33 to the relay coil in the contactor for battery A, line 44 is directly connected to one terminal of the contact 34 for the electrical contactor for battery A, line 45 is connected to the contact 34 in the electrical contactor for battery B, line 46 is connected to lead 37 to the relay coil in the contactor for battery B, and line 47 is connected to the fuel solenoid 28. When it is desired to start the engine power must be provided on lines 42 and 47 so as to operate the electrical equipment, and power must be selectively provided on either line 33 or 37 so as to activate one of the contactors 24 or 26 to connect the selected battery in series with the starter 22. With the lines 44 and 45 being directly connected to one terminal of the batteries A and B, respectively, the necessary power for lines 42, 43, 46 and 47 can be provided by the selected battery with the appropriate switching being done in the remote controller 40.

With the present invention an auxiliary or manual controller 50 is provided which is adapted to be attached directly to the engine itself. The manual controller is wired to the various leads 42-47 from the remote controller 40 to the engine so that it can start and operate the engine with the same effectiveness as is provided by the remote controller. As shown, this manual controller comprises only two switches including a three-position (start-run-off) switch 52 and a battery selector switch 54.

The start-run-off or power switch 52 comprises a three-position, two-pole toggle switch with one of the positions providing a momentary contact which must be maintained by the operator and with the other position providing a contact which is maintained by the switch itself. Such a switch, for example, can be one such as Model No. 3l2TS1-59 provided by Micro Switch, a Division of Honeywell Inc., of Freeport, Ill. The open pole or contact 53 of the maintained switch position is connected by leads 55 and 56 to the lines 47 and 42, respectively, of the aforedescribed engine control circuitry. The other open pole or contact 60 at the momentary switch position is connected by a line 61 to a first terminal 62 in the battery selector switch 54. Terminals 64 and 66, which are adapted to be connected to the contacts 53 and 60 respectively when the switch 52 is closed, are each connected to a second terminal 70 in the battery selector switch 54 by means of a line 68.

The battery selector switch is a two-position twopole toggle switch such as switch Model No. l2TS15-3 provided by Micro Switch, a Division of Honeywell Inc., of Freeport, Ill. The switch includes the aforedescribed center terminals 62 and 70 which are adapted to be selectively connected either to a set of contacts 80 and 81, respectively, or to a set of contacts 82 and 83, respectively. Contacts 80 and 81 are connected by means ofleads 85 and 86, respectively, to the lines 46 and 45, respectively, in the aforedescribed engine control circuitry. Also, contacts 82 and 83 are connected by means ofleads 87 and 88, respectively, to the lines 43 and 44, respectively, of the aforedescribed engine control circuitry.

In operating the manual controller 50 the battery selector switch 54 is first moved into one of its two alternative positions wherein either contacts 82 and 83 are closed (with contacts 80 and 81 being open) or wherein contacts 80 and 81 are closed (with contacts 82 and 83 being open). As shown in FIG. 1, the contacts 82 and 83 are closed. This will allow lines 43 and 44 to be connected through the power switch 52 so that battery A may be switched into operation. When it is desired to start the engine with battery A, the power switch 52 is depressed so as to close both contact 53 and contact 60. Battery A is then connected through line 44, line 88, and line 68 to the terminals 64 and 66 of the power switch. With terminal 53 closed, the battery then provides power to the fuel solenoid 28 and the other electrical equipment 30 through connecting lines and 56, respectively. With the terminal also closed, battery A provides power to the relay coil 32 in the contactor 24 via terminal 62, connecting line 87, and line 43. The energization of the appropriate relay coil 32 closes the associated contact 34 and energizes the starter 22. The power switch 52 is such that it must be held down to maintain the terminal 60 closed. Once the starter has started the engine, the switch is released and the momentarily closed contact 60 is opened. However, contact 53 is maintained closed by the switch so as to provide continuous power to the electrical components in the engine to provide for continued engine operation until such time as switch 52 is manually switched to its of position wherein both contacts 60 and 53 are opened (shown in FIG. 1).

It will be readily appreciated that the battery selector switch 54 may be flipped into its alternate position wherein terminals and 81 are closed, and a similar operation to that aforedescribed can take place wherein battery B can be momentarily connected in series with the starter 22 to start the engine by means of the connecting lines 85 and 86 and the corresponding leads 46 and 45 to the engine electrical control circuitry.

FIG. 2 diagrammatically illustrates the manner in which the manual controller 50 may be attached to an engine E which is being used to drive a fire pump P. The manual controller may be attached directly to the side of the engine with the various lines leading from the switches 52 and 54 being directed through a conduit to an underlying junction box 102 which connect the rest of the electrical circuitry for operating the engine.

The specific construction of the manual controller 50 is shown in FIG. 3. Each switch is mounted by lock nuts to cover plate 108. The enclosure includesan integrally formed outlet portion 104a on the bottom wall thereof for directing the connecting lines 55, 56 and 85-88 to the conduit 100. A flange 106 is attached at each side of the enclosure to provide a means for mounting a cover plate 108 to the front face of the enclosure. S'aitable cut-out portions 110 are provided in the cover plate so that the protruding switch actuating arms 1 12 may extend exteriorly of the plate to be readi- 1y accessible to the operator who desires to operate the engine in accordance with the aforedescribed procedure. In addition, it is desirable to provide an enclosure 114 to normally cover the switches. This enclosure 114 is sealed to the cover plate (by means not shown) and extends completely about the switches so that the engine may only be operated in emergencies by first breaking the seal 115 and removing the enclosure.

From the foregoing description it will be apparent that the manual controller of the present invention provides a means whereby two rather conventional switches can be used to start and operate an engine wherein the starter for the engine is selectively connected to one of two batteries. The control circuitry utilizes a manimum number of components and is arranged to be used without decreasing the efficiency or reliability of the main remote control operator.

Although the best mode contemplated for carrying out the present invention has been herein shown and described, it will be apparent that modification and variation may be made without departing from what is regarded to be the subject matter of the invention.

What is claimed is:

I. In a starting circuit for an engine having a starter and first and second batteries which are arranged to be selectively connected in series with said starter, each of said first and second batteries having a separate circuit to said starter including a normally open relay contact, secondary circuits for each of said first and second batteries including a relay coil for closing the relay contact connected to the associated battery, an additional circuit connected to electrical equipment necessary for operation of the engine, primary switch means located at a point remote from said engine for selecting one of said first and second batteries and for connecting it in series with said additional circuit and with said relay coil so as to close said associated normally open relay contact and provide power to said starter, the improvement comprising an auxiliary starting circuit provided on said engine including first and second switches, said first switch comprising a two-pole switch with one pole being arranged to be selectively connected to one of said first and second batteries and with the other pole being arranged to be selectively connected with the relay coils associated with said batteries, said second switch comprising a two-pole switch with one of said poles selectively connecting one of said relay coils with one of said batteries and with the other of said poles connecting to said selected battery the additional circuit connected to the equipment necessary for operation of the engine whereby said engine can be started by closing both poles of said second switch;

2. In a starting circuit for an engine as set forth in claim 1 wherein said other pole of said second switch is connected to said one pole thereof and to said additional circuit connected to the equipment necessary for operation of the engine and with said one pole of said second switch being connected with said other pole of said first switch which selectively connects said battery relay coils, and a connection between said pole of said first switch and said other pole of said second switch.

3. In a starting circuit for an engine as set forth in claim 2 wherein said second switch is a three-position switch and wherein said other pole of said second switch includes a momentary contact while said one pole of said second switch includes a maintained contact whereby said engine is started by holding said second switch in a closed position for a period of time after which time said engine continues to run when said second switch is released because of the maintained contact of said one pole of said second switch. 

1. In a starting circuit for an engine having a starter and first and second batteries which are arranged to be selectively connected in series with said starter, each of said first and second batteries having a separate circuit to said starter including a normally open relay contact, secondary circuits for each of said first and second batteries including a relay coil for closing the relay contact connected to the associated battery, an additional circuit connected to electrical equipment necessary for operation of the engine, primary switch means located at a point remote from said engine for selecting one of said first and second batteries and for connecting it in series with said additional circuit and with said relay coil so as to close said associated normally open relay contact and provide power to said starter, the improvement comprising an auxiliary starting circuit provided on said engine including first and second switches, said first switch comprising a two-pole switch with one pole being arranged to be selectively connected to one of said first and second batteries and with the other pole being arranged to be selectively connected with the relay coils associated with said batteries, said second sWitch comprising a two-pole switch with one of said poles selectively connecting one of said relay coils with one of said batteries and with the other of said poles connecting to said selected battery the additional circuit connected to the equipment necessary for operation of the engine whereby said engine can be started by closing both poles of said second switch.
 1. In a starting circuit for an engine having a starter and first and second batteries which are arranged to be selectively connected in series with said starter, each of said first and second batteries having a separate circuit to said starter including a normally open relay contact, secondary circuits for each of said first and second batteries including a relay coil for closing the relay contact connected to the associated battery, an additional circuit connected to electrical equipment necessary for operation of the engine, primary switch means located at a point remote from said engine for selecting one of said first and second batteries and for connecting it in series with said additional circuit and with said relay coil so as to close said associated normally open relay contact and provide power to said starter, the improvement comprising an auxiliary starting circuit provided on said engine including first and second switches, said first switch comprising a two-pole switch with one pole being arranged to be selectively connected to one of said first and second batteries and with the other pole being arranged to be selectively connected with the relay coils associated with said batteries, said second sWitch comprising a two-pole switch with one of said poles selectively connecting one of said relay coils with one of said batteries and with the other of said poles connecting to said selected battery the additional circuit connected to the equipment necessary for operation of the engine whereby said engine can be started by closing both poles of said second switch.
 2. In a starting circuit for an engine as set forth in claim 1 wherein said other pole of said second switch is connected to said one pole thereof and to said additional circuit connected to the equipment necessary for operation of the engine and with said one pole of said second switch being connected with said other pole of said first switch which selectively connects said battery relay coils, and a connection between said pole of said first switch and said other pole of said second switch. 